The small hill to the left of Qingshui Valley is called Qingshui Mountain. It is neither high nor large, but it has steep slopes on three sides, with only the southern slope being slightly gentler, accessible by two mountain paths, making it a classic location that is easy to defend and difficult to attack.
For this reason, the Dakang garrison stationed at Qingshui Valley has always preferred to set up camp nearby, so they could retreat to the hill if the situation became critical.
The Dangxiang army was well aware of this, so Li Jikui was not in a hurry. Before arriving, he had already guessed that the Tielin army might retreat to Qingshui Mountain.
After sending Zhuo Ban away, Li Jikui summoned his logistics officer, “Quickly check how much grain the Tielin army has left.”
Qingshui Mountain is easy to defend and hard to attack, and warhorses cannot climb it, so Li Jikui had no intention of launching a direct assault. Instead, he planned to besiege the mountain.
Hunger is a powerful force, and if the Tielin army had nothing to eat on the mountain, they would come down on their own.
He only needed to wait with his cavalry at the foot of the mountain.
The logistics officer soon returned, “Commander, the Tielin army’s grain camp has been burned down.”
“Burned?”
Li Jikui frowned slightly.
But it made sense. If he were the Tielin army’s commander and found the grain could not be moved in time, he would not leave it for the enemy either. Burning it during a retreat was the best option.
“Can you tell how much grain was burned?” asked a staff officer nearby.
“Judging by the amount of ash, it should have been enough for the Tielin army to eat for twenty-five days to a month,” the logistics officer replied.
“The Tielin army’s standard ration is for one month. It seems they didn’t bring much food when they fled to the mountain. They probably can’t hold out for long,” the staff officer nodded slightly.
“Commander, sir, are we really going to wait here for the Tielin army and not proceed with the southern campaign?” asked a deputy general standing nearby.
In previous years, when the Dangxiang southern expedition army encountered such situations, they usually left a cavalry unit to guard the mountain while the main force continued south to plunder.
But from the tone of Li Jikui and the staff officer, it seemed they intended to deal with the Tielin army before continuing south.
“General Zhou, the Tielin army is not like other Dakang forces. Their combat strength cannot be underestimated,” the staff officer explained. “If we head south and they break out, our main force could be caught in a pincer attack.”
“Can those ragtag Dakang troops stop us?” the deputy general said dismissively.
“In the past, it would have been impossible, but don’t forget, the Tielin army developed that strange formation. If other Dakang armies imitate it, they’ll be difficult to deal with,” the staff officer said. “The current garrison at Weizhou City is Fan Wenyuan, an old fox as troublesome as Qing Huai. He started clearing the fields months ago. If our southern campaign is stalled and the Tielin army breaks out to seize Qingshui Valley, we’ll be trapped outside Weizhou City with no way back.”
“In that case, we should indeed eliminate the Tielin army before continuing south,” the deputy general said. “I’ll arrange manpower to clean up the Tielin and Dening armies’ camps and prepare two cavalry battalions for a long-term stay.”
“Approved,” the staff officer nodded.
“By the way, sir, a report just came in. A dozen Han slaves didn’t escape and stayed at the Dening army’s camp. They said the commander promised that if they performed well, they could return to Dangxiang to reunite with their parents, wives, and children. How should we handle this?”
“We Dangxiang people keep our word. Since the commander made a promise, let them go retrieve their families,” the staff officer replied.
“Yes, sir,” the deputy general bowed and left.
On Qingshui Mountain, the Tielin army had safely retreated to the summit and was setting up a temporary camp.
“Sir, have we counted the numbers? Why are there so few people? Were some units scattered?” Zhao Lao asked Jin Feng. “Also, where’s Xu Xiao? I haven’t seen him.”
“Xu Xiao took some men to carry out another task,” Jin Feng replied with a smile.
“What task? How many men did he take?” Zhao Lao asked urgently.
“Seven battalions,” Jin Feng said casually.
Zhao Lao was stunned. A Tielin battalion has five hundred men. After last year’s battle with Qing Huai and the Dangxiang, they lost nearly two and a half battalions. Though they later recruited some new soldiers, they still had fewer than nine battalions.
Xu Xiao took seven battalions, meaning there were fewer than a thousand men left on the mountain.
Zhao Lao had already noticed something was off with the number of torches and people, but he didn’t expect the numbers to be this low!
“With just over six hundred men, how can you hold Qingshui Mountain?” Zhao Lao said anxiously.
“I’m not only going to hold Qingshui Mountain, but also Qingshui Valley, ensuring the Dangxiang army comes but doesn’t leave,” Jin Feng said confidently.
Zhao Lao turned to look at Jin Feng as if he were looking at a madman.
The Dangxiang army had fully assembled. From Qingshui Mountain, their camp’s torches stretched endlessly into the distance.
Yet Jin Feng, with just over six hundred men, beaten and forced to retreat to the mountain, dared to boast of making the Dangxiang army come and go no more?
Zhao Lao’s first thought was that Jin Feng had lost his mind.
But considering Jin Feng’s usual style and his current expression, Zhao Lao suddenly felt uncertain.
“Did you prepare food on the mountain in advance?” Zhao Lao asked tentatively.
A few days ago, he had seen Zhong Wu leading men carrying grain away from the camp. He hadn’t thought much of it at the time, but now he realised it was likely sent to the mountain.
If so, it meant Jin Feng had long planned to retreat to Qingshui Mountain.
“Yes,” Jin Feng didn’t deny it.
“How long will it last?”
“If we ration carefully, it’s enough for our six hundred men to eat for two months.”
“It seems you’ve prepared thoroughly,” Zhao Lao said, recalling something. “The bamboo poles and shields, you deliberately let the Dangxiang burn them, didn’t you?”
Jin Feng smiled, not denying it.
“So, you knew the Dangxiang captives would raid the camp, and you didn’t really fail to stop their main force. You deliberately let them into Qingshui Valley, didn’t you?” Zhao Lao suddenly pieced many things together. “I don’t know what your plan is or why you’re so confident, but I suggest you light more torches on the mountain to confuse the Dangxiang.”
“Good point. As expected, experience counts. How did I overlook that?” Jin Feng immediately ordered more torches to be lit, creating the illusion that the entire Tielin army was trapped on Qingshui Mountain.
At dawn, Zhang Qiwei, along with his staff and the stragglers he gathered along the way, returned to Weizhou City.
“What did you say? Qingshui Valley has fallen, and the Tielin army has retreated to Qingshui Mountain?” General Fan, eating breakfast, nearly choked on the news.
“Where’s Zhang Qiwei? Tell him to get in here and face me.”
The situation had been perfectly fine, but this man had turned it upside down.
General Fan was truly furious this time.
“Commander, Zhang Qiwei said he was injured and didn’t enter the city. He took his men straight back to Bianjing.”
